


Blood rush

by marikodes



Category: Voltron - Fandom, Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fluff, Love, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-06-16 06:28:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,338
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15431013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marikodes/pseuds/marikodes
Summary: [Story originally posted to wattpad]During Keith's time with the Garrison, he was one of the top pilots to have ever been there - he usually was considered a lone wolf of the program except for one thing. [Y/N], a quite cheerful girl with a unsolvable personality, she was quite persistent in Keith's life and determined to befriend the cold male - to which he had finally given in and was more talkative to her at the Galaxy Garrison. A form of friendship had began for Keith to which he didn't fully hate.By the time the Kerberos mission had ultimately failed without a solid explanation, the Garrison had decided to send another spacecraft up to space to investigate and report back. For this mission, [Y/N] had volunteered to go (much to Keith's arguing that she shouldn't) and provide her piloting skills. The second mission for information had also backfired, leaving no Intel or idea of what was really happening up there.With [Y/N] now missing and Keith getting expelled from the Garrison, he begins his search for you, unknowing how he'd be led soon to you through an intergalactic war.





	1. | The Past |

Many students from the Galaxy Garrison were lively as of recent, news spread of a mission into space was being put forward and so many students wanted to be apart of going on that mission - even though they weren't told what would actually be going on. The halls haven't had this much ruckus since the announcement of the Kerberos mission taking place. I glanced left and right at the idle and passing groups of people, seems like everyone was talking about it. I put on a smile until I decided I should ask what was going on, two male students were walking by until I called out one of their names. 

"Hey Jon?" My voice sounded a bit serious but it was mostly filled with curiosity, I mean, this could practically be a one time opportunity really if you think about it. Jon and his friend, Gavin, had stopped in their tracks to look at me. 

"What's up? Haven't seen you in a while." He asked, further following it with a sort of shocked statement as we hadn't talked for a couple of weeks due to classes and assignments. 

"Yeah it has been a while, anyway, do you possibly know what everyone's talking about? Y'know with the space mission Garrisons suddenly announced." I mumbled the first part slightly as I thought about it until I asked my question, knowing I shouldn't stop him for too long. Who knows, they could be going to their next class or to study? Or even just chill if they have a free period. 

"Oh, I don't know the full details but they're looking for a group of maybe three students or so to come volunteer." Jon said as he placed a hand on his chin in thought. "That's mostly it, no one knows the full information apart from if the mission is done successfully then your grade and credit get bumped up big time." He chuckled at the end, giving the real reason for everyone wanting to go. You couldn't really blame them, having a high amount of credit is pretty good, plus you would have a high chance of passing with a high grade on an actual mission. 

"I see. Hey, are you possibly signing up?" I asked him with a smile, Jon was a pretty good pilot and his grades were actually decent so he'd make a really good team member. He seemed to think about it for a minute before shaking his head, no. 

"Nah, I think I'll pass on this. I practically have a pass for my course already so I don't really need this grade boost like others do." He said as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head, smiling in my direction. 

"Hey [Y/N], how about you sign up? Your piloting skills are mint, the rookies could use an excellent pilot on their mission." Gavin jumped in on the conversation, sounding excited. The idea hadn't really been thought of, it's true I wanted to know what this mission was about but I hadn't actually thought of becoming a crew member for it.  

"I'm not sure.." I said as I let out a nervous laugh out at the end. "I'll definitely think about it though." This was definitely something I would be thinking about, even though I really didn't need the grade boost. 

"Well, if you do decide to join, go see head office and they'll do everything from there. I think the closing date for sign ups is maybe tomorrow or the day after?" Gavin said. I nodded and thanked both of them for the information and their time. We had gone our separate ways as I began making my way down the hall, I may as well go find Keith and see what he's up to. 

_

"What do you mean you're signing up for the mission?" A familiar voice asked, it's tone slightly raised out of shock. It was already the next day and after a sleepless night of debating the pros and cons of going on this mission, I decided to didn't really have anything to lose by signing up. However, Keith thought otherwise with my decision. 

"Relax, we don't even know yet if I'm getting accepted into the crew." I said calmly with a slight shrug of my shoulders, I honestly didn't think they would pick me as my piloting skills weren't that great and they had a lot more excellent students to pick from. 

"Do you even know what this mission is about?" Keith asked, a slight frown on his face. He's always been worried when people close to him decide to do things like this, when I say people I mean Shiro. After his mom and dads disappearance, he really didn't like the idea of others leaving him, especially if he had finally accepted them into his life. I understood his worry but knew he really should calm down a bit with worrying. 

"Not really, I think they'll give a briefing of the mission to only the people chosen though... Probably." I say,  rubbing the side of my arm out of habit. For all I know I could really be signing up for my death, never to return to earth again but I don't think they'd be that cruel. 

"Just... Please don't sign up.." The fear was practically oozing out of his words. As much as he didn't want to show it, he wasn't as cold or mean as people from the outside would assume him to be. Keith's just a guy who's gone through a lot, put up super high walls with the idea of no one climbing it, just so he could protect himself from being hurt. I let out a sad sounding sigh, placing my hand on his shoulder before pulling him into a tight hug, resting my chin on his shoulder.

"Just think, if I'm picked, I'll be back before you know it, I'll make sure to get back here even if it's the last thing I do. Okay?" I spoke softly, feeling him almost tense up at my words, he really wasn't ready to let me go - mentally and physically. He wrapped his arms around my shoulders, pulling me closer, I moved my head so it rested under his chin. 

"If you've signed up, then I am too." Keith spoke seriously, the vibrations of his voice made my head feel weird as his neck was lightly pressed against my head. I gave a sigh of relief before giving an awkward nod in response.

I'm not sure how he came around to agreeing to me going but he did, it felt nice knowing I had his trust with this mission if I were to go. It was also a nice thought if we were both picked for the mission, two best friends in space - that would definitely be a great story. 

_

The sign ups were officially done, I wasn't sure how many students had actually signed up to be picked but I guess the number was big. I was currently sat in class, engineering. Some fool decided to break one of the class safety rules for the fifth time and so we had to be taught each safety rule again and write on essay on why it's important to stay safe around pointy objects and electrical items. 

Many students were purely on edge due to it being announcement day but they had no idea when it was going to be announced and it was already second period. I began wondering if they would announce it later on until I thought too soon. The static of the mic could be heard as it was turned on, everyone in the classroom practically perked up as they awaited the news. 

"Can the following students please come to the head office." A male voice spoke out sternly, the sound of paper crinkling could be heard until he spoke up again. I looked over towards Keith who was on the other side of the classroom, he obviously looked slightly anxious as he bit his bottom lip, my brows furrowed partially in sadness and I offered him a smile to try and calm him down a bit. "Porter Dame, Stella Venay, [Y/N] [L/N] and Kylie Drew. Reminder, the following students to the main office, thank you." 

Everyone was quick to look in my direction, some people gave off looks that said they were annoyed that I was chosen while others cheered me on. Keith's face was the only one I could really focus on though, the look in his eyes that said don't go, to stay there where it was safe. I frowned in his direction before standing up, tucking my chair under my desk and making my towards the door, I ended up sparing one more look towards Keith before leaving. He just sat there staring at his desk, trying to piece together what was happening. 

_ 

Silence hung thickly through the air when we had all first arrived. We had no idea what to expect but we could all tell we were both excited and nervous for the information of this mission. At least the team was filled with some of the top students, not sure what I can say for Stella though. As we stood there waiting patiently for Mr. Derenti to tell us what was happening from here. 

"You four have been chosen to partake in this mission." He said as he looked up from his computer screen and pushed his square glasses up on his face. Mr. Derenti stood from his seat and walked around his desk so he could be in front of us. His features looked quite harsh, sharp even but we all knew he wasn't much of a harsh person at all. "So, as you know, the Kerberos mission involving Samuel Holt, Matthew Holt and Takashi Shirogane had launched a while back." Derenti started off. Everyone, including myself, nodded their heads, yes. I also ended up raising a brow in curiosity, did the Kerberos mission have something to do with ours?

"Well, that mission has been deemed a failure due to the ship and it's members going quiet for weeks, showing no signs of returning as we've lost their signal." My brows raised in a bit of shock. Quiet? Was everything okay up there at Kerberos? Was Shiro okay? Knowing this information now made a sense of nervousness wash over me. Shiro meant a lot to Keith... How the hell would he take this if he found out? "However, the Galaxy Garrison have decided to investigate this further by conducting a second launch to Kerberos to gather information." 

The briefing went rather quickly after that. Once we were told all the details of the mission, we were told by Derenti to go pack our things as we were leaving tonight. I was the last to leave into the hallway, everything was so quiet and it didn't even feel right, I felt bad for taking this chance but I knew I had to... I'm glad I got picked over Keith to be honest. I let out a sigh before stretching, there was no need for me to be worrying now, I just need to get this over with and get Shiro back to earth along with the Holt's. 

I made my way towards my dorm room, a determined smile made its way onto my face as I entered my room and dug my duffle bag out from under the bed and placing it on top of my bed. First I started with a change in clothing or two for when I'm up there (just in case), my journal and pencil, a book and a pair of reading glasses (as much as I didn't really need them, they were handy to make things just a little clearer) and finally I picked up a photo of me and my family and a photo of me and Keith. I smiled at both of them before placing them both into the bag before zipping it up. I walked over towards my closet and decided to take out a black bomber jacket and also slung it onto the bed. We weren't leaving it later and so this was my time to get things sorted out before its too late.  
_

My digital clock finally hit eight pm, everyone could be heard in the halls beginning to go back to their rooms for lights out. I ran a shaky hand through my [H/C] hair, this would be my first time in space and it wasn't even for a good memory. I shook off the nervousness that tried consuming me, I couldn't let this happen now of all times. I threw on my bomber jacket and quickly tied my boot laces up, I got one last look at myself in the mirror, here goes nothing. I grabbed the duffle bag and slung it over my shoulder before leaving my room, making my way towards the boarding bay. I heard an all too familiar voice call my name, making me stop in my tracks, I merely took a deep breath before turning around to see Keith looking at me. 

"Hey Keith." I said with a smile, I took a step forward towards him so that we were in front of each other. My mouth opened, about to say an apology for leaving but I was stopped when I was practically consumed into a hug. Keith usually hated PDA, in private he would do something here or there like a hug or head pats but that was it. This time it meant something, it showed his fear of losing a friend. 

"You better make it back here, alive." He whispered, his hold on me tightening slightly. I dropped my duffle bag down from my shoulder and loosely hugged him back, smiling at his gesture and concern. I wish he didn't have to worry this much but that's what makes him Keith, he's actually just a caring person for those he was close too, I was glad to see this side of Keith before I left. 

"Idiot. Of course I will, I don't plan on dying any time soon." I said humorously. We stayed in that hug for a couple more minutes until my name got called by Derenti to hurry up. I slowly pulled away from Keith, showing him a smile. "Hey, will you smile for me before I go? I don't want to have you frowning while I leave." I say as I playfully tug at his cheek with my hand, he just let out a soft chuckle which led him to giving me a small smile. I actually felt satisfied and content when he had smiled at me. 

"I'll see you when you get back then." Keith said, nodding towards the hallway behind me saying I should get going then. I nodded my head back at him in understanding before grabbing my duffle bag and slinging over my shoulder again. 

"Definitely. Hey, stay out of trouble now while I'm gone." I let out a small laugh to which was joined by Keith letting out a small chuckle too. We said our final goodbyes and I left, expecting this mission to go smoothly so that I could see Keith again.

But we never did return.

We got to Kerberos to only report how the members of the mission were not to be found, we found zero traces of them or their ship which was confusing. We were about to head back to give a full report but had been met with a bigger problem, a much bigger problem. A space cruiser possibly three or four times bigger than our own hoovered over us, a light then beamed down onto the ship that seemed to drag us towards the cruiser and that's when panic hit all of us, our last radio message to the Galaxy Garrison was the members panicking and screaming as I told them we were being pulled in by another cruiser before the lines went totally dead. After that, everything became a living hell.


	2. | The past - the other side |

After the second mission launch to Kerberos, it had been probably two or three months and since then I've been alone again. I was back to being the sort of lone wolf everyone expected me to be. Time felt as if it was passing by even slower now than it did before [Y/N] left, I wonder how she's doing up there. From time to time I'd see one or multiple of her family members at the office, probably asking how she was doing up there but I didn't know the answer they were given. 

I found it weird at first to call [Y/N] a friend in the beginning, she seemed quite popular with the rest of the trainees at the beginning of our training and so having her taking an interest in my life and her helping me out at times was strange but I'm thankful when I look back at it like this. I was quiet and I guess sort of cold to her no matter how friendly she was but she stuck around - showing no signs of giving up on me. Hopefully, when she gets back to the Garrison, I'll tell her thanks for being there for me when I needed it.

_

We had began training when we had gotten into the Garrison, flight simulations. Obviously, we were all being told what to do and how to fly accordingly in formation. What's the point? Honestly. As everyone was listening to the instructor, who was Shiro, during this whole simulation I began getting slightly bored so I went ahead and messed around with my controls, speeding up and slowing the simulated aircraft back into the formation. 

"Fall in line cadet." One of the other instructors said, I stared blankly at the screen while readjusting my controls so that I was back in formation.

"Sorry, just testing my controls - Sticks loose." I spoke out vacantly. truthfully I didn't really know why I was actually here but either way, I knew I was a better pilot than some of these other trainees... Maybe I just didn't feel happy with being sorted with these guys?

"Keep this up and you'll be stuck as a cargo pilot." One of the other trainees said to me quickly after I spoke, he was then followed by someone else agreeing with a "Yeah Keith, you're gonna get us into trouble." I sat there pretty unphased by the remark, I mean, I didn't really care what they thought of the situation. 

"Keith, don't listen to them. Just keep focusing for now." A female voice could be heard over the communicator, I pulled a questioning look towards my screen before relaxing my face again.

"Whatever." I replied simply, focusing back onto the recreation of the flight training.

"Decrease elevation by twenty degrees." Shiro quickly said to everyone to try and bring everyone back on track to the simulation. As soon as I heard those words and pushed forward on all my controls, quickly flying past the formation of the other trainees and heading downwards. I heard an amalgamation of people shouting "Keith". Oh well. 

~

"Hope you all liked it in the simulator, you can thank pilot fancy-pants over there for the privilege of spending the next three weekends in here running drills." As he finished his sentence he faced towards me with a sort of glare, I kept my cool and just continued to stare forwards until he finally walked away

"Thanks a lot." James, the male trainee next to me, sarcastically said as he glared at me. I furrowed my brows as I glanced over to him with a serious look.

"My pleasure." I spoke calmly before looking straight ahead again.

"We all know the only reason you're here is because of Shiro." I heard him say to me, making me look back over at him from the corner of my eye.

"I can out fly anyone in this building." I retorted back, becoming a little bit annoyed by his comment. 

"Keith, don't." The same female voice spoke up again from next to me as she placed a hand onto my shoulder, I quickly turned over to face her. She had a serious look on her face, her [h/l] [h/c] hair looked like it was naturally left down (which kinda framed her face nicely...), her [e/c] eyes weren't all together sharp but had a soft edge to them but still held enough seriousness to look almost intimidating. I opened my mouth just about to respond to her when I heard James speak up again.

"Oh yeah, is that so? Is that what mommy and daddy told you before they-" My anger had gotten the best in me in that current situation as he continued on with his sentence but before he could even finish what he was about to say I punched him with enough force to knock him back. Everyone went quiet during that moment (apart from the low, quiet gasps some students gave out) as James quickly fell to the ground, I hastily went down to follow up with another punch but I was quickly held back by the girl from earlier as she grabbed my shoulders and used most of what I could assume was her strength to keep me from making it worse. I gritted my teeth as I was just about to argue for her to let me go but the instructor from earlier instantly ran over to us. All three of us had been advised to go to his office... even though that girl did nothing wrong.

~

She was the first to go in, it maybe took five to ten minutes until she came out. I just looked at her with a deadpan expression to which she just returned a smile before walking off.  
_

I remember that day for multiple reasons; the day I punched James, the day Shiro told me to not give up and the day [Y/N] covered for me and made sure I didn't get into too much trouble. She didn't have to do anything, especially for a guy like me who she didn't even know and yet there she was, helping me through everything along with Shiro. 

We didn't automatically become friends during that moment but it truly was a start to my trust in her, even though it may of been small back then.

I was currently sat in a piloting class, being taught something we had already learned so I really wasn't paying attention. I began re-reading my former notes from the beginning of the term, I had a pretty good chance of passing this class and so I just mostly needed to keep my head down and pay attention to when assignments and essays were being announced. I let out a quiet sigh, ready to switch my brain off and stare at whatever would pass the most time until the classroom door opened, everyone's attention peaked towards the figure walking into the class. Mr. Derenti, the officer who was apart of both Kerberos missions. Our teacher looked over at him for a moment before nodding and paused their presentation, allowing Mr. Derenti to speak.

"Apology for interrupting your lesson, this will only take a moment." He started as he stood at the front of the classroom, his face looking serious. We rarely have in-classroom announcements? This must be pretty important then... I guess.

"As we all know, we've launched two missions as of recent but unfortunately we have bad news about both." The words that left his mouth made me freeze. Both... missions? What the hell happened?

"The first Kerberos mission involving Samuel and Matthew Holt and Takashi Shirogane was the first to fail, on their arrival they had been met with unfortunate circumstances and have been reported... dead." My blood ran cold in that exact moment, all feeling in my legs and arms ceased to exist as I stared at the officer in front of us. "We do not know the exact cause of death and are currently assuming it was due to piloting error but we will do further investigation to find out and will release a new statement when the time comes." I dreaded hearing about the recent mission launch. How long did they know they were dead? Did they send [Y/N] and the rest of the students up there knowing they were dead but still wanted to get the information or the original mission done? Did this mean Shiro was...? I sat there, my head hung as I stared absentmindedly at the desk. It felt way too hard to grasp at this information at the current time.

"As for the second mission to Kerberos, involving the following students:  Porter Dame, Stella Venay, [Y/N] [L/N] and Kylie Drew. Due to our misjudgment they suffered from lack of good piloting skills, again leading to a piloting error." The officer quickly told everyone this news. This honestly couldn't be, [Y/N] was an amazing pilot? There's no way that something could of happened like this... could it?

"After receiving this news, we have decided to hold an assembly and mourn for both teams. That is all." His face had only then turned grim as he then exited the classroom, I wonder how many classes he has yet to tell that announcement to..

For the rest of the lesson I sat absentmindedly, every word the teacher spoke going through one ear and out the other. All I could really care about was trying to keep myself calm and piecing together my thoughts.

Shiro... [Y/N]... There's no way that you're both gone, there's gotta be a real explanation for their disappearance and I'll find out what it is no matter what happens. I'll find you both no matter the consequences.

_

Weeks, probably months, had past to which I stopped turning up to the Garrison and when I did, I was only on edge and didn't focus. I couldn't. Knowing that the two people I held close to me at the current time had just been taken away from me was another stab to the heart, it already hurt knowing mom and dad were gone. I know I couldn't give up hope though, they were definitely out there - somewhere and I was going to find them. As I was spending more time at home, I was also doing my own research on Kerberos. I pulled out maps of the galaxy, stolen notes from the Garrison and just began pinpointing information together to find a way through this. Along with conducting this investigation, I also trained a lot without anyone's help. 

_

Over time I picked up more information, even if I couldn't understand what to do with it. I held on strong to the hope I had left to find them and did everything I could do at this point in time. I just needed... some sort of sign. 

That's when I heard it. I was flicking through the different channels on the radio I had taken from the Garrison until something I heard caught my attention, I flicked back to the previous station and listened closely. 

"-of the Garrison ship 289KBM, I repeat, this is [Y/N] [L/N] of the Garrison ship 289KBM. Something has taken me and my crew ca-" As she was talking the station went dead and nothing but static could be heard. I didn't know what to do after that, I just sat there with the radio in hand as I stared shocked at it. That was [Y/N], that WAS [Y/N], she was alive. Her usually lively voice sounded so drained and forced almost... What the hell was going on up there, did this mean Shiro could be alive too? 

I gripped the radio in my hand, I knew I couldn't give up on her and Shiro and there's no turning back now. I just had to find a way to get into space immediately and bring them back but how? Stealing a rocket from the Garrison was going to be more difficult than stealing a radio or a couple of copied files and what was she even going to say? All she managed to get out was "ca"... What word was she trying to say? Camp? Cast? Captive? I panicked more and more at the idea.

Hold on you two... I'll find a way to get you both back.


	3. | Gone |

A raging pain ran through my head as I was slowly beginning to regain consciousness. My vision was blurred as I opened my eyes, different shades and contrasts of purple was all I could see as I laid confused; where was I? Where the hell was Kylie or Porter or even Stella?! I began squinting my eyes to regain focus as I then turned my head to the side to look around but what I saw in front of me was baffling. I seemed to be in some sort of small containment room, a cell maybe? Not the ship we had all arrived on when setting out to Kerberos. To be fair, it was a pretty funny looking cell but there wasn't anything in front of me apart from tall walls and a door. No bed, no desk, no windows - apart from a small rectangle cut out into the door but apart from that, nothing. Purple illuminated lines ran up the wall which helped to give off a source of lighting. Turning over ever so slightly onto my side I had let out a small groan, my whole body still felt asleep and I felt a slight discomfort within my whole body from the things such as my hands to my arms and my feet to my thighs. What the hell is actually going on, is this a joke or a simulation by the Garrison? I laid still for a couple more minutes, allowing my body to adjust to this new scenario before slowly sitting up, taking my time to not stress myself out even more than I was. 

I felt panicked but I knew it really wasn't gonna help during a moment like this, I had to remain calm right now, I had too. I took a deep breath, gulping down a lump in my throat as I then stood up with the strength I had left in my body. I went to take a step forward towards the door but stumbled in the process onto my hands and knees... How long have I been out? Way too many questions right now. I pushed myself up again and walked carefully towards the door. My feet pushed upwards so that I was stood on my toes, peeking through the rectangular cut out window to see some sort of guard standing with their back facing me, I noticed two rooms or "cells" placed on the opposite side of mine, two guards also in front of them both. 

"Hey! What's going on?" I shrilled out to which I got nothing but silence as my answer. I furrowed my brows as I stared out of the little window for longer, there were no signs of movement which both scared and unsettled me out. The guards were almost like statues, I wonder if they were actually real or just placed there for intimidation for whenever we would wake up. "Hey!!" I complained louder, still receiving stillness for a response. I gritted my teeth in that moment and moved back from the door, only to then run into it with my shoulder. Grunting, I toppled backwards but was able to keep my balance. That door was definitely made of some sort of metal and it definitely hurt, that's for sure. I ended up moving towards the door again, this time only to pound on the door with the sides of my fists multiple times. Either way, someone was bound to hear this, they couldn't... or they were just being weird and ignoring it. I heaved out a sign when I had noticed it was no use, turning back and going to sit against the wall on the opposite side of the room... Hopefully somebody will come for me soon.

_

My eyes shot open in a startled manner as I was awoken by banging and yelling. I looked up towards the door and noticed a figure was stood in front of it, I pulled a questioning look before rubbing the remaining sleep out of my eyes, quirking my eyebrow in confusion. What happened? Did I fall asleep? I remained quiet for a minute or two to see if they would speak until they had punched the door with quite a bit of force, making me flinch from the loud noise.

"Inmate! Get up now before I drag you up and out!" They commanded, they sounded male. I gulped - my throat felt pretty dry as of right now - before slowly standing up, using the wall as a support as my muscles were still a bit tired. The door slowly raised upwards as it opened revealing some sort of creature, it was much taller than me and it seemed to be purple, or that could've been due to the lighting but either way, it also seem to have two large pointy ears that were not human ears... What the hell was this thing. They seemed to be clutching something in their hand and before I could look at it properly it was tossed into the room, what seemed like cloth landed on the floor in front of me. "Get changed, when you're done knock on the door and the guard will escort you to main hall. If you don't there will be consequences" They said in a gruff, threatening voice before walking away, the door closing automatically. I stared down at the articles of cloth in front of me before picking them up, it seemed to be a black cat suit (or it could've been just a two piece?) with a purple tattered shirt? Well these guys really didn't look after their outfits now did they? Sarcasm aside, i walked towards the door and looked out of the little window to make sure no one was watching before walking over towards the corner of the room that was close to the door so I wouldn't of been seen anyway. 

The uniform was awful... It was tight and pretty uncomfortable and it even smelled pretty bad but at least it was something though. Not like they're actually maniacs who make us walk around naked so I'll give them some credit. I threw on the purple shirt over the suit and sighed, I began folding up my old uniform, placing my boots on top of the pile. Shuddering, a chill went up my spine as my feet made contact with the cold floor. I rubbed the back of my neck awkwardly as I looked down at myself, I couldn't tell if it honestly looked alright but I guess I just have to put up with it for now.

I stiffly walked over towards the door, old clothes in one hand as I knocked on it with my other hand. The foreign metal door opened immediately causing me to take a step back. The guard from earlier was stood in front of me with a strange object in his hands. Was it a gun?! My eyes widened a bit at the thought but they didn't seem to notice my discomfort. 

"You can leave your old clothes here, someone will be around to collect them while you're briefed." their voice sounded almost robotic, lifeless. I wearily nodded as I placed the pile to the side of the door and looked back at the guard, they stepped to the side as they awaited for me to step out of the room to which I complied quietly. I have no idea what these guys are planning or what sort of operation they even have going on so I guess I need to be a bit cautious as of right now and just keep my head down. For all I know they could be hostile, probably would explain the gun. "Follow me and do not wander off." They spoke out to me, they began marching down the hallway and so I did my best to keep up, not wanting to end up lost or in any sort of trouble as of right now. 

After this I got all sort of commands. "Wait here.", "Continue walking.", "Take a left/right." and by this point I was in a line with other... People? I guess maybe they were aliens? Many of them were different but some of them seemed to be the same species. I awkwardly rubbed my arm as I watched as a figure, similar to the alien from earlier who visited my cell, placing handcuffs onto all the aliens in the line. I scanned the area around the cue, the layout of the hallway looked similar to the small holding cells, I looked behind me at those further down when I had then spotted Porter; he looked absolutely terrified. His eyes, cheeks and nose were dusted in a light pink irritated shade as tears streamed down his face, he had been looking at the ground until he looked up and spotted me and his face instantly lightened. 

"[Y/-" before he could finish saying my name I placed a finger to my lips, signaling him to keep quiet for now. His face fell, a frown growing on his own lips as all he could do was nod and lower his head. I felt so bad for him... I hope we can get out of this soon. A frustrated yet sad sigh escaped my lips as I faced forward again, the guard reaching me. He seemed to be dragging a sort of trolley with him that held the handcuffs and it didn't take him long to grab a pair from the pile and place them onto my hands. They were definitely weird, not like the cuffs back on earth that's for sure, I looked down at them as I examined the design - they were a lightish gray with green accents that glowed. 

After what felt like maybe ten or fifteen minutes the line began moving, multiple guards with those weird looking guns were stood on either side of the line to make sure no one tried escaping. I have to admit the technology on this place looked fascinating, it's just a shame I wasn't able to get a better look at it. As we had began exiting the hallway we had then entered a big hall, it led to a large space that had a massive circular wall in the middle which had multiple stairs leading to the inner section and a doorway that led to a small room... what the hell is it?

I noticed how another line was walking in our direction, heading to leave this open space and go into the hallway. Multiple guards were leading a small group of different aliens but on a closer inspection when they had gotten closer one stood out and then it had hit me. 

"Shiro-!" I exclaimed in shock, my eyes widening immensely at the sight of him alive. Wait until Keith hears he is okay! Upon hearing his name being called out he looked in my direction and stopped walking, clearly shocked to see me as well. In that one moment I forgot what was even going on and tried running to him; keyword being tried. I had probably gotten two steps in before I was shoved to the ground by the guard closest to me, to which I fell straight onto my side with a loud thud. By this point I was sure everyone had stopped walking even in the other group and just began staring at me, seeing what would happen. 

"[Y/N]!" I heard Shiro call out, a tinge of worry in his voice and he even attempted to get out of his line but was stopped immediately. I looked over at Shiro for a split second before looking at the guard who had shoved me, his gun pointed towards me as he had an angry look on his face. 

"Get back in line inmate, now!" He commanded, his gun not moving an inch. I took a sharp breath in before shakily getting back up, the guard forcefully grabbing my arm and enforcing me back into the line. Brief eye contact with Shiro was made for a couple of seconds as he mouthed something at me. What? What does that mean? I furrowed my brows in confusion but was unable to ask any further questions as the lines began moving again, to which I walked and watch Shiro leave the open space until that same guard hit me over the head with just enough force to hurt - telling me to focus or else I'd have even more problems. This was already so bad...

_

What was time? How long had it been since we got here? My brain was creating a migraine from all the questions and the bright purple lights from the containment cell. This place was honestly hell... This place was a living nightmare. From however long we had been here I'd found out we had been captured by a race called the Galra, their empire has existed for over ten thousand years, it's said they're looking for something while conquering many, many, many planets. 

Wiping my sleep deprived eyes I frowned while furrowing my brows, I hated this. Why did I agree to go on that mission, I should of listened to Keith. I could've kept polishing my piloting skills at the Garrison but no, I was rash and rushed into this situation... I can't even remember my reason... I let out a frustrated groan as I leaned my head back, allowing it to hit the wall behind me. This cell basically became my home by this point, if I wasn't here I was either working for the Galra doing their dirty work or I was sat in the small room leading to the arena, praying every minute that I wouldn't be chosen next as a fighter. Not many of those chosen would come out alive and sometimes they would get the prisoners to face each other - if you both refused they ended up either just killing you or taking you somewhere else where you wouldn't be seen for hours. It was cruel but there seemed to be no way out of this. 

Tears slipped down my face, my throat burned, my body ached from exhaustion. I felt like I was truly losing my mind, it was so much stress and pressure. From being stuck in a lonely room majority of the time to fearing my life will be taken next in the gladiator ring, how did the aliens who have been here longer survive without going mad? I'm sure there were some cases but... how? For all I know I could've only been a couple of hours since we got captured or it may have already been months since; I wonder how the others are holding up or how Shiro is doing. We talked secretly during the time they forced us into manual labor, I told him how Keith was last coping and told him how I got here and he seemed shocked and sympathetic, apologizing for being apart of the reason we were here but I honestly didn't blame him. I blame myself for accepting the mission but knowing someone else could've been here instead of me made me feel worse. What if Keith was here instead? I always shuddered at the thought, it was cruel but I'm just thankful he wasn't here, he doesn't deserve this treatment.

_

Another hour of fearing for my life, it began again like clockwork, all the Galra had taken their seats to witness the newest fight and the fighters were just being chosen. I kept my head low as I felt the thumping of my heart speed up, it was practically in my throat. My arms and legs felt almost weak with anxiety as I mentally panicked. please not me, please not me, please not me, please not-

"You there, your time has come." I heard those words leave the mouth of the Galra guard which resulted in my breath hitching in my throat, I looked up and noticed how no one was moving. I glanced over at him and noticed he was staring straight at me with an irritated look on his face. Shakily, I took steps forward but before stepping out into the actual arena and I nervously picked up a weapon which only ended up being a small blade, a dagger. Then, I made my way out into the light, many Galra citizens began cheering and demanding the next fighter to come out. Everything felt like it was going so slowly, the only thing I could really hear was the sound of my own panicked breathing and the sporadic beat of my own heart pounding within my chest. My grip on the dagger remained tight, so tight that my fist began shaking. I'm not ready. 

The door on the other side of the arena opened as it then revealed my opponent, I looked over from my side anxiously to see who I was facing... this must be a misunderstanding. On the the other side of the arena was - Shiro!

He looked far too serious, like he had done this before, but that serious look in his eye quickly disappeared as soon as he saw me. We both knew we couldn't do this and that was bad. Either way all outcomes of this tournament would end badly. It was either that I would die, Shiro would die, we both die or we get taken away. I gulped down the lump in my throat as I began walking towards Shiro, he did the same as we met in the middle. 

"Shiro, I-" I began, my own voice sounded beyond broken and drained. Shiro's brows furrowed as he shown me a sad smile. He was like an older brother to Keith and me, he was there for us both in times of need and he was a good man. 

"It's okay [Y/N], you can do it." Shiro said, my [E/C] eyes grew wide from shock and realization of what he was talking about. Just as I opened my mouth to respond, the Galra viewers began yelling; it was hard to make out what was being said as there was just too many voices. I gave a serious look as I furrowed my brows, tears burned at the edges of my eyes - threatening to fall. 

"No... I won't." The first part came out as a hushed, shaky whisper before I spoke clearly as I then looked down at the dagger in my hand, proceeding to then throw it away somewhere else into the arena. Shiro gave a toothy grin as be proceeded to ruffle my hair, this was the side of Shiro I looked up to. The side that even in the most scariest of situations, he could make anyone feel calm and at peace, he was a puzzle piece that held others together. 

"I'm proud of you, [Y/N]." That was the last thing I heard from Shiro before being separated, the Galra guards opened the gates back up and dragged us out of there. I fought as much as I could and even escaped their grasp and all I could remember in that moment was running to Shiro, giving him a final hug. My tears fell down my face during that moment cause of the fear and anxiety that was working up inside my chest and brain and all he could do was hold me tightly and stroke my head for what seemed like mere seconds before we were forced apart again for the final time. That was the last time I had seen Shiro.


	4. | Help |

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for the longish wait on this chapter! I've had some stuff going on irl and so I needed a small break between these chapters to just recollect my thoughts!
> 
> Anyway, just a warning that this chapter will contain blood/gore and anesthesia awareness and so I've placed a * at the beginning and end of the sequence so you can skip if needed.

Clanking of metal, the shuffling of unidentifiable objects, mumbling. These were the things I was able to hear as my reasoning for my surroundings began returning to me. It was hard to remember what had happened to me before I started waking up but I was definitely sure this wasn't my cell. A grumble left my soar throat as I had began opening my eyes, everything around me was a blur but at first all I could see was a brutally, bright light glaring down upon me. Squeezing my eyes shut I went to move my hands to cover and rub my eyes, to wipe away the remaining sleep that may have lingered but there was no movement. I slowly opened my eyes again, everything was slightly still blurry but my vision was coming back to me. I looked around me, my perception going straight to my hands to see why they were unable to move. Distress only began to take a hold on me at that moment in time and I began struggling to get myself loose from these restraints. This is ridiculous, what the hell am I here for?! I wanted to scream out, call for help but nothing came out. It felt like there was sandpaper stuck in my throat as I tried to let out some form of sound but the only thing heard was my struggled breathes as my throat felt like sandpaper. In this situation, scared was an understatement - was there even a word to describe my feelings right now? I frantically began looking around for some sort of answers, my eyes beginning to burn from the white light and my tears threatening to spill.

"My, my. You seemed rather perplexed." A sort of feminine, croaky voice spoke out. My eyes widened at the realization someone was in the room with me. I turned my head slightly down to see a cloaked figure that seemed to be escorted by two other... cloaked figures who wore weird looking masks. Who the were these people? They don't seem like the usual Galra guards that do patrols or end up threatening you when you haven't done enough work.

I opened my mouth to try and speak but realized I still couldn't talk, this action didn't go unnoticed as the shorter, possibly older cloaked figure took a step closer to whatever I was strapped down on.

"Unable to speak? Here, I have something that will make it better." They said. My eyes squinted to try and block out the harsh light and focus on this person's - or alien's - face. I didn't get much of a good look but from what I could see they had white hair and two strange markings on their face. This thing reached inside their cloaked and brought out a vial containing a strange looking liquid, it seemed to glow a slight purple but it may have just been the lighting cascading down upon it to make it look like it glowed. They then proceeded to to open up said vial and place it to my lips to drink, I was hesitant that was for sure but I ended up drinking the liquid - what other choice did I really have? The liquid shot down my throat, giving off a slight burning sensation. I had let out a small cough before taking a deep breath.

"Who are you?" I croaked out, my voice wasn't fully better but at least I was able to make some sound. The cloaked figure next to me furrowed their brows, looking rather serious now that I could speak again.

"That is unimportant, the real question is, why did you not fight during that battle?" Their voice was stern, they looked down a bit so I could see their eyes better, they peered into mine rather coldly and didn't move. It honestly freaked me out a bit.

"I-I... I couldn't..." My voice came out as a mere whisper, a sort of cold sweat was beginning to form on my body from being interrogated by this thing. They seemed to just scoff and proceeded to ask again.

"Why? Why didn't you attack him?" Their voice began to seem more threatening as they held that same cold gaze. A small bead of sweat ran down the side of my face as I held my breath.

"Shiro... Shiro is like family to me... I couldn't harm him even if my life was on the line." I said, my voice sounded like it held a sort of determination that I had no idea I was holding on to. The cloaked figured just hummed at my response, they pulled away before walking towards the door of the weird containment room, they paused before turning back and looking at someone in the back of the room.

"Interesting... Take care of her, I'll go get someone to take care of Shiro." They commanded before leaving the room with the other two cloaked figures in front of me. I blinked a couple times, about to move my head to see who was behind me until they began walking towards the medical bench I was on. They came into the light and I could see that they were Galra.

*

He began looking at a small table next to the cold, metal table I was laid upon before rummaging around with the things that were on there. I struggled to swallow the lump down in my throat as my heart rate began to pick up in speed. What was going to happen to me? What were they doing to Shiro?

As I continued to stare at this particular Galra, I noticed the medical instrument he picked up; a syringe filled with murky looking substance. My eyes widened with a look of shock and worry plastered onto my face. There was no way I wanted that weird looking liquid OR the syringe anywhere near me so I had began to squirm, hoping that if I moved enough then the restraints would come loose or something so that I can escape but that only seemed to happen in action movies... it's worth a shot, right?

As I continued to struggle, I felt my arm being grabbed forcefully - attempting to keep it down and in place to which he was successful, the Galra began to slowly dig the syringe into the crook of my arm until it was in far enough for him to commence squeezing this liquid into my arm. It burned at first, the fiery sensation in my arm was so uncomfortable that that my eyes began building up with tears. Once the liquid was done being emphatically squeezed into my arm, he had taken out the syringe and placed it back onto the small table. What hell is even going on and what was that liquid? I was just about to snap at this Galran dude but I was suddenly overcome with an overwhelming feeling of drowsiness, I fought this feeling for as long as I could but it was no use and I closed my eyes.

I expected myself to fall into slumber but I still felt awake, however, I couldn't move anything, see anything or even talk. It was like my body had shut down to sleep but my conscious was still aware to everything. My hearing could pick up the Galra's breathing as he seemed to shuffle around different metal objections on the work top until everything seemed to go quiet in the moment for a split second, almost as if he was hesitant until his footsteps were heard moving towards the lower end of the medical table. I questioned mentally what the hell he was doing down there until I felt a cold, thin, sharp-rigged object being pressed onto my ankle.

What the fuck? What the actual fuck is going on?

The panic was taking over my brain as it had no where else to manifest, my body wasn't shaking, I was unable to scream, I couldn't do anything. But all of these emotions were only intensified when I felt the object being pressed down, cutting into my skin and flesh with a burning pain that was unbearable. I wanted to cry, I really did but I was just paralyzed. The blade - which felt like some sort of saw - kept cutting deeper and deeper into my ankle and into the flesh, my breathing and heart rate had definitely picked up by this point and I could barely focus on anything but the agonising pain building up in my entire left leg, feeling the blood just seeping down the sides of my leg and pooling on the table. 

Why was this happening? Someone please just make it stop, please I'm awake! Somebody god damn help me!

By the time the Galran dude got to the bone, the vibrational feeling of having my ankle sawed in half was even more painful as it seemed to make my whole skeletal structure hurt beyond words. I was frantically looking around behind my closed eyelids - wanting to find some sort of closure and just to see anything but there was nothing, just an eternal darkness that went on forever ahead. 

This whole process felt like it had gone on for hours but in reality it had probably been a couple of minutes maybe? The smell of iron was strong as it was draining from my body quicker as he got closer to sawing closer to the other end. By the time he was done, my mind didn't know what to focus on. Everything was overwhelming from the blood loss, to the fact I no longer had my left foot, to what the hell was even going on. 

I could feel something cold and metal being placed onto where my foot used to be, I couldn't make sense of what it was though. It made my flesh actually sting when it was pressed into place and seemed to be sealed with locks that dug into my flesh and clamp on tightly with a firm hold. If I could've, I would have flinched from the unexpected pain that shot through my leg like a bullet. My leg, or specifically my ankle/foot region, was just sore and beyond sensitive to pain at this minute and I was actually beginning to slip into unconsciousness as the pain was finally subsiding into a numbness, the remaining of my senses finally blocked out and I fell unconscious.

*

When I finally woke up everything felt groggy, my hand immediately went up to my head as I was sporting an awful migraine. I slowly opened my eyes and looked around, confused at where I was for a second before small snippets had come back to me. I slowly sat up, the pain and soreness in my legs and lower back were dreadful but I fought through it and looked around more carefully. I was no longer strapped down, the smell of blood and burnt flesh filled the room disgustingly and my foot was now replaced but a mechanical foot... wait what? On closer inspection my foot had definitely been cut off and replaced with a black and gray metal foot that seemed fully operational but weird to adjust to. Small memories came back from the "operation" and how excruciating the pain was, my eyes actually filled with tears at the foggy sequences playing in my head. 

I couldn't take this anymore, it was just so wrong and overwhelming. I needed to find everyone and get the hell out of here. I shakily swung my legs over the side of the medical bench, noticing that where my leg was, there was blood - mostly still in liquid form but I looked like it was beginning to dry. I slowly stood up, with support of the medical bench but the soaring pain that burst from my leg made me let out a breathy whine, the painful pressure now on my left leg was awful, I took a moment to compose myself and took deep breaths before I slowly limped towards the door. 

Everything was too quiet. Using the wall for support once I made it out into the hallway, there seemed to be no guards on patrol which was weird. I continued limping down the hallway to the left, being super cautious of my stepping. I noticed a noise of a cart being rolled down the hallway and footsteps coming closer and I froze, my breath hitching in my throat as I awkwardly watched the mysterious sound turn the corner. It... definitely wasn't a galran guard, on closer inspection they seemed to be familiar...

"Stella?!" My voice was croaky and quiet but I managed to sound her name out, she noticed me leaning against the wall awkwardly and quickly ditched the cart, running over to me instantly. 

"[Y/N]!? Where have you been? What the hell happened to you?" She examined me carefully as she voiced her concern, she looked like she wasn't doing so well herself. Her usually rich dark complexion seemed to be colder, her face and figure obviously more thinner than when we first arrived. The grease evident in her hair as she had her curly hair placed into an awkward bun - her baby hairs untamed. God, even her eyes looked so devoid of life and joy. She quickly placed my arm around her shoulder as she began to be my support. 

"I can't explain it right now, I just need to find a way for us to escape... Maybe a communications room that we can broadcast from." I croaked out, my voice felt dry like the first time I woke up in that containment room. I looked over at Stella as she thought before she seemed to have gotten an idea.

"I think I seen a communication room while I was on my way down here actually, I can take you there." Stella offered and I nodded at her suggestion, we began to stagger down the various hallways as she led towards the room we had been needing to find. It was rather risky at times due to the guards patrolling but we were able to hide out of sight just in time not to get spotted.

-

Once we made it inside, we scouted it out to make sure no one was actually inside with us. Once confirmed, we stepped over to the main hub and began trying to decipher what the text was. 

"Crap... even they speak another language..." I said, I took a deep breath and just began pressing all sorts of buttons and keeps - hoping at least one will began broadcasting. Probably after about five or so minutes of not knowing what the hell we were doing we noticed something resembling a broadcast symbol popped up. Me and Stella looked at each other rather nervously before she prompted me to try it. 

"Umm... Hello, this is a distress signal to any friendly activists who may be listening to this broadcast. We have been captured by the Galra. Me, many of my friends and teammates and many other different species have all been taken prisoner - if you hear this, please help us. My name is [Y/N] [L/N] of the Garrison ship 289KBM, I repeat, this is [Y/N] [L/N] of the Garrison ship 289KBM. The Galra has taken me and my crew captive and many other species captive." My voice sounded rather distressed but firm as I voiced our situation. The broadcast seemed to be sent anywhere and possibly everywhere by this point and I could only hope we would make it out of this alive.

"Okay, let's go. I'll take you back to your room so that you can rest." Stella said as she placed my arm over her shoulders again. I wasn't sure if it was an adrenaline rush to escape or the numbing pain driving me but everything didn't feel real in this moment, like a beckon of hope was finally showing and I couldn't believe it. As we walked out of the room, we were cautious if there were any guard around and I was escorted back to my room by a frail Stella. 

"I'm sorry this happened to you." Stella said in a saddened tone, her face was still firm and determined though. I looked over at her for a moment before shaking my head, no.

"It's okay, it doesn't matter now. What's done is done." I said, not even believing my own words as if I was still trying to convince myself this would be all over soon but I knew in my gut it wouldn't. "What we need to focus on now is getting out of here." I said, my voice sounding just as determined and Stella nodded in agreement. 

I can only hope for now that everyone is okay.


	5. | Research |

It got pretty lonely out here in the desert but who could I really turn to anymore? My main priority by this point was finding Shiro and [Y/N], after that signal that had clearly been broadcasted by [Y/N] from wherever the hell she was I knew I couldn't give up looking for them. I just had no idea where to begin looking - what other clues did I really have apart from that, the mission logs that I had copied over onto a tape recorder and the Garrison documents that where about the first and second Kerberos mission... It's not like I could even get more information from them anyway, I'm basically a drop out by this point.

I took a deep breath as I tried to set out a plan, something to start my investigation with. My best bet would probably be re-reading over the notes on the Kerberos missions carefully and probably write down key information or even information that appears multiple times; those would be the prime points of evidence and if it was mentioned multiple times then there's bound to be some sort of significance to it. I then proceeded to get up from the couch, bringing the pile of documents with me as I went to go sit as the desk. Sitting down on the desk chair, I began to open up a spare journal, grabbing a random pen from the side and then continued to flick through the pile of documents that had obviously been photocopied. 

Both missions had been steady and successful in the beginning; they probably would have been successful coming back home as well but something didn't make sense. The question that lingered most with this investigation was what had got to them? Aliens maybe? There wasn't much talk about aliens, basically was a conspiracy theory that people debated on for fun, if that really was the cause of both failures then that would cause a major panic within society - knowing the things some feared and others thought were a made up concept were to blame. A sigh escaped my lips at that thought. Maybe, I am getting a little too ahead of myself. My eyes then focused back onto the pieces of paper in front of me, details on the ships throughout the journey there such as if any damage was taken or the ships overall power, the thing that had me most concerned was the fact that both ships had gone off the grid around the same time but how was it possible? Unless the ships were destroyed and left to drift around space but where would that leave the crew members... Sam and Matt Holt and Shiro hadn't been in contact with the Garrison until they had informed them they had finally arrived at Kerberos and with [Y/N]'s team, they sent the voice recording at the very last minute. I glimpsed over a certain section of the page that read 'check voice memo #38 for 2nd Kerberos missions broadcast'. Grabbing the tape recorder, I skipper through various voice memos until I reached the 38th one, mentally bracing myself for what I was about to hear. 

-

"Command this is pilot [Y/N] [L/N] of the Garrison ship 289KBM, our ship-" various yells and screams could be heard in the background as the crew members seemed to be trying to figure out what to do. "Our ship seems to be under attack or something of the s-sorts." [Y/N] voice seemed shaky and panicked but it was obvious she was trying to keep her cool for not only her sake but for the sake of her fellow class mates.

"C-Commander David Drewer is no where to be found, the o-outside cruiser is getting closer!" [Y/N] continued giving a report on what she could see. Various alarms began to sound off, probably due to the close proximity of the incoming cruiser. 

"[Y/N] what the hell do we do?!" A new voice appeared, it sounded quite feminine and also as if they were on the verge of crying. The was an uncomfortable silence of the voices that followed, only the alarms could still be heard.

"I-I... I don't know... I'm gonna try and get us out of here!" By this point, [Y/N] definitely sounded distressed as she then went quiet, probably trying to pilot away from the cruiser as best as she could. 

"They're getting closer!!" A male voice yelled from within the distance of the recording. Everything just seemed to be chaotic, no training had really prepared them for this and now they had to think on the spot of what would be effective in this situation.

"We're going to die aren't we? This is it-" The same feminine voice sobbed out in fear, only to then get quickly cut off.

"Stella! No one is gonna die here!" The male voice angrily reassured much louder this time. As the chaotic scene continued to sound as they argued back and forth about getting away, there was a loud bang that pierced through the air before the sounds of metal screeching, being torn and blasted away could be heard. 

"Shit! Everybody get ready to-!" Those were the last words spoken on the tape recorder, static followed. 

-

It was definitely an attack. I pinched the bridge of my nose and stopped the tape recorder, a sigh escaped my lips as I set down the pen. Why did this even have to happen... 

I picked up the pen again, determined to at least write down the main clues. This may be hard to do as of right now but I've got to just power through it, for their sake. 

-

As the day went on and slowly became night time, I had wrote down in multiple notebooks and pieces of papers. I had listened to each voice memo multiple times and picked at everything I could from the words being said to what their toned sounded like. By this point, the living space probably looked like a war zone with how the papers had ended up being scattered everywhere, notebooks piling up and books relating to space, planets and coding had also managed to find their way onto the desk and floor. Once I had finished writing down notes I looked through them, trying to make sense of my scribbled rants and theories, it was ultimately hard to see where things could connect due to the masses of information crammed into rough drafts. 

I let out probably the hundredth sigh of the day, resting my head onto the desk. My eyes were about to close but had reopened, my head proceeded to turn to the right as I then began to stare blankly at the empty wall - until an idea came to mind. 

I gathered my notes together as I quickly stood up, rushing to find some string and pins. Once found, I rushed back to the empty wall and began piecing the notes together. The notes of the first Kerberos mission that then led onto the second mission, sure it wasn't the best looking as it still looked rather messy but thanks to the red string tied onto the pins, it helped to show which scenarios led to the next. Once satisfied with the order of notes, I sighed in relief as I slumped down onto the couch, feeling my eyelids droop in exhaustion. It may not be much but it's a start...

I promise, I'll find the both of you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait on this chapter ^^"
> 
> I've recently have had a lot on my plate such as college work, personal issues and just mental/physical health in general but hopefully I'll be back writing chapters again haha!!


	6. | The fight |

(TW // GORE, BLOOD)

 

A hoarse sputter escaped my lips as I slowly moved my limbs, small pieces of rubble had fallen from the cement wall with every little movement I did. The spear in my hand had crashed down onto the ground with a clank, the debris following and creating a light clicking sound as they fell onto the floor. My eyes slowly opened again as I tried looking around, my vision was rather blurry at this moment in time – everything in the arena seemed to move together as my mind and eyes made everything spin. Finally unhinging myself from the wall, I collapsed onto the ground. Shaking my head, I propped myself up onto my hands and knees to get ready to boost myself up, my head throbbed with pain around the back of my head from where it had collided with the wall. 

Forcing myself up, I grabbed onto the spear for extra support as I leaned a bit of my weight onto it. This was going to be a lot tougher than I thought... With strength like that, it's going to kill me before I even know it. My whole body was shaking with nerves, the threat of tears came to my eyes as thoughts of anxiety and dread came to mind. Was I going to die here? Was this the end? I knew I had to fight back at all costs but how, how do you even get close to that thing without it rocketing you to the closest wall or possibly mauling you to death. My eyes wandered towards the beast, trying to analyse any sort of weakness that it may have, which at this moment seemed hard since it was like the perfect option for combat and entertainment. 

My train of thought couldn't pick out a weakness straight away so I began to check off all it's possible strengths and see if it had any small cracks in its system: To begin with, the giant ears on top of its head probably meant it had spectacular hearing, any little moment you do must be heard by it or just most movement. Secondly, its legs were rather long and from my observation earlier it was quite fast getting from one side of the stadium to the other. Thirdly, it's claws where also quite a strength, they were rather sharp and long... It's quite clear I'm not going to pull off a close ranged attack and so probably my safest bet would to pull off any distance attacks that I can. Now for its eyes... Wait, that's it! It's eyes! It doesn't have any so it can't see so this might make this a little bit easier. 

Frantically looking around, I noticed that the arena grounds had pillars scattered around randomly. Maybe... If I were to create noise in front of one of the pillars, then it would collide with that pillar? That's something that could possibly work, maybe if I did it enough times, I would be able to confuse its senses. I stood up straight, gripping the spear in both of my hands and speedily moved over towards the first pillar nearest to me. The new, metallic foot clanked down loudly onto the floor, louder than I would've liked but there was no helping it – the beast probably would've heard it anyway, so this meant that I would've had to get to the pillar quickly anyway.

The wolf-like beast let out what seemed to be a distorted screech as it began sniffing around, trying to find me, it looked like it was beginning to plan its steps out as it cautiously started moving around the arena. Once I had reached the pillar, I raised my spear and proceeded to whack it against the stone structure repeatedly, listening as the bangs echoed throughout the stadium. The beast itself abruptly stopped in its tracks, looking right in my direction and running quickly towards the pillar, my mind stopped functioning for a second as I tried to think of what to do next. My adrenaline had kicked in quickly as I sprinted out of the way of the beast just in time to see it collide head first into the pillar, as I stared behind me to see that the beast had been sent into a state of confusion for a moment, my feet had accidentally tripped over one another sending me flying towards the ground, the sand and dust on the ground flying upwards on my impact. I groaned out in pain as I rolled onto my side, my spear had flown a good five or six feet away from me by this point so I couldn't support myself onto that for now, I used my arm to prop myself up so that I could look back at the beast, my eyes had widened at the scene before me, the stone pillar that stood proudly within the arena now had a giant chunk of its structure missing, it was severely broken and cracked in a lot of pieces and for the beast itself it had taken quite a hit to its head, rocks and rubble clung to its head and disheveled hair, blood began trailing down its dog like face and began to matte its hair together in a disgusting fashion. 

A lump formed within my throat that was difficult to swallow, I could feel the blood drain from my own face as the beast faced my direction, looking like it was ready to charge again. My hands shakily pressed down onto the ground, pushing myself back up onto my feet in a hurry, however, as I took one step towards my spear my body had collapsed towards the ground again, panic coursed through my veins as I searched all of the place to see what may have been the cause of me falling until my eyes had reached my metallic foot, it had disconnected from the holder around my ankle. As much as it would have been helpful to have my foot back, I had no idea how to attach it back and so with this thought I crawled as quickly as I could towards my spear, my heart pounded against my rib cage as I heard the beast behind me let out another deafening screech before beginning its charge towards me, the ground shaking with its weight. 

As soon as I had reached my spear I grabbed onto it and rolled onto my back, the ground had stopped shaking as I had realized that I was now face to face with the grotesque beast; it's face was something I'd imagine from a nightmare, up close you could see all the scars and wrinkles, how matted and straw-like its fur was as it practically sprang in every direction. My heart beat had quickened in pace as fear took over, the hair that was surrounding my face kept getting blown back as the beast breathed down upon me. Snarling, it had began opening its mouth, readying it's attack towards me – strings of saliva poured from its teeth and lips, some hitting the ground around me while others fell directly onto my figure and face, making me cringe. My hands gripped onto the spear tightly and the moment the beast rushed down to chomp down onto me, I thrusted the spear with as much force as I could through its head, the sounds of flesh tearing, and bones cracking made me want to throw up. Noticing its predicament, it began struggling to try and remove the spear but to my relief it was only making it worse for itself as it plunged the spear deeper and deeper into its head until it managed to barely break the top of its head.

Blood slowly began trickling down the spear, just before the blood could reach my hands the tore the spear from the beasts head, the disgusting red liquid now gushing all over my frame before the beast had slowly collapsed down onto the ground, its head trapping me as it came crashing down on top of me, a wheeze escaped my lips as the wind had been knocked out of my lungs. Trying to regain my composure, I began to slowly wiggle myself from under the beast, the weight of its head making it a little harder than needed but I had manged eventually. As I sat in front of the monster, my breath uneven and rigid, I noticed just how silent the arena had become; reality had come crashing down onto me as I had realized the full situation. 

I just killed this thing... I had killed THIS monster and if I hadn't, I would be dead...

I was quick to shuffle backwards, my whole body shaking from shock as I stared with wide eyes at the fallen creature in front of me. A shaky hand reached up to my mouth to cover it, my stomach felt like it had dropped, and I felt like I would hurl at any moment. The putrid smell of copper and the disturbing scene before me was enough to send anyone other edge and I knew I could stay here any longer. I tremulously grabbed onto the spear for support and stood, my legs nearly giving away. I leaned half of my weight onto the spear to act as a sort of leg until I was out of here. I scanned around the arena quickly to see if I could see my prosthetic foot until I realized it was lost under the beast as it was no where in sight. An unsteady sigh escaped my chapped lips as I hobbled back towards the entrance, the continuous silence within the arena unnerving me until I arrived back into the small weapons hanger and the doors behind me slid shut with a small bang. My legs finally gave in as my knees contacted the metal floor beneath me, my body hunched over as my forehead rested against the cold surface.

Focusing on my breathing, over time I was able to sit back up again, I wiped my face with my bruised and bloodied hands and sighed, looking down at myself. The attire given to me was torn in several places revealing discolored skin and cuts from being thrown around. As I was about to relax since it was just me in this room, however, that small relief I felt was soon crushed when the door in front of me opened to reveal a figure, the bright light from the outside walkway didn't help in identifying the figure as all I could see was a black cut out of them and also for the fact that because of the lights were so bright I had to cover my eyes with my hands slightly to make it somewhat better... Which in the end it didn't help, due to not even being able to establish who this person was my mind began to panic again which inevitably caused my breath to hitch in my throat and anxiety filled thoughts to race within my head;

Who was it? What do they want? Why are they here now of all times?! 

The first person to pop into my head was that it could be a guard, taking me either to my room again or to see that crippled, old witch again from before. Instinctively, I hunched over again and wrapped my arms around my head – as if that was going to make the person go away or make me seem invisible. 

[TO BE CONTINUED]


	7. | Gladiator ring |

By this point, I wasn't sure what amount of time had passed - no one had come to my cell after Stella risked getting me back here. I wonder if she's doing okay or did, they realize what sh- we did? I could only allow a sigh to escape my lips as I leaned my head back against the cell wall. It was hard to track the time from my cell, the soldiers took turns patrolling so no matter what time it was, there was always someone watching each cell section - the patterns of how they walked by though basically became stuck within my mind that I began counting each movement carefully. This seemed to be my only form of strategy and entertainment as of right now, other than that all I had done as of recent was sleep, stare at the door opposite me and practice standing and walking on my new foot. At first, it hurt to even put pressure onto it, the metal made my flesh sting with an all too familiar burning sensation but within maybe what had been a couple of hours - or even days - of waiting and inspecting the swelling and bruising that was around the top of my ankle I was then able to get back up onto my feet and pace around slowly (with the support of the wall of course at times.)

As I began closing my eyes to take a nap, I heard the door to my cell rise open, my eyes remained half-lidded as I gave a disinterested look towards whomever decided to pay me a visit. It was none other than a Galran sentry guard. My eyes had begun glaring at the sentry guard as it began to speak out. 

"It's time." Was the only thing the static, cold voice had said, its tone was beyond monotone if that was even possible and it didn't seem to even budge after saying it. I stayed sat down for what seem like minutes but, it had only been seconds. A sombre sigh escaped my chapped lips as I slowly began to get up, stretching my arms above my head and stretching out my back to release any tension I had been building up while uncomfortably sleeping within this cell. As I began walking towards the guard, my foot steps were clearly different - one being a soft patting sound against the metal-like flooring and the other clinked with every step - it would take some time getting used too but for now it was something that I just didn't have time to think about. 

I knew exactly where we were going; the arena, the only place they would ever take me. Usually the Galra made their prisoners do stock counts or made them slave around doing all the dirty work on the space-ship but for some reason they kept quite a few of the prisoners free for the arena to battle against horrible and hideous monsters from different galaxies or they made you fight the other prisoners here... Or so I've heard from one of the cells in my area. Either way, the thought of even going back into the arena terrified me, I didn't want to fight but also knowing if I didn't fight and they tortured me again made me anxious. There was no real win in this situation and either way would leave me more traumatized than the last.  
On our journey to the main arena we passed by many different guards, different lines of alien prisoners being escorted to their forced jobs or just back to their cells. One might of thought that I was looking around the place like I hadn't seen it before but in reality I was trying to memorize my surroundings, every little corner and twist. One of these days, this place will go haywire and it's either gonna be because of a rescue or from us retaliating... Maybe if everyone had enough courage then it would work, just maybe everything would work out and be alright. 

We had finally made it too the arena entrance - the despair and anxiety wrecking my chest as my heartbeat sped up and my limbs felt like jelly. I may have been acting strong to convince myself but in reality I am scared, I joined this mission to simply find Shiro but now here I am being forced into a fight or flight situation that could lead to my death.

After what felt like minutes of just standing at the participants entrance of the arena, I walked into the small rectangular room, the doors behind me shut meaning I had no way of backing out now. My vision looked around the room, it was particularly empty apart from one wall containing different hand held weapons. These weapons had ranged from small knives to hatchets and swords, my eyes however went immediately towards a spear that had just been propped up against the wall, I couldn't exactly pinpoint why the spear called out to me but I grasped it and lifted it up. Lightweight and thin... but the metal looks strong enough to handle blows. 

I lightly tapped the spear onto the metallic ground, the loud clinks echoed within the small room. Before I even knew it my hands were trembling, the metal spear in my hand shaking along with it, I tried to calm my nerves down by breathing deeply and tightening my grip on the pole like weapon. Just... survive, no matter what. For them, for Keith.  

I turned towards the arena entrance and watched as the doors separated, revealing the glaring lights that illuminated the battle grounds. My eyes squinted as my brows also furrowed together, my hand instinctively raising to blocking the lights from my vision until I was used to it. My steps were hesitant as I left the small room behind and entered the gladiator ring. The Galra was all the could really be seen as they encircled the entire arena, rawrs of cheers and yelling was almost deafening as I slowly spun around to look around the arena. This was awful. How could they find this entertaining? Scratch that thought... They're a dangerous race who kidnaps and enslaves others for the sake of power, a gladiator battle is nothing to them. As my attention focused on a fairly sized box that was positioned within the stands, I noticed the witch was standing there, watching. I gulped down a lump in my throat as I clutched the spear until my knuckles turned white. So she's come to see a show? Oh, I'll give that monster a show. My glare towards her was harsh but she seemed unphased, the next thing to happen was the other door that had been on the other side of the arena had begun to open, revealing my opponent. As the beast stepped out from its confinement, it let out a deafening shriek that made me flinch.

What the hell is thing?! Was my first thought as my eyes widened. At first glance you'd think it was some sort of wolf hybrid however, It's figure was contorted and hunched over more painfully that an actual wolf plus the size of this thing was shocking, maybe six or seven feet tall? And that's only on all fours... I hope it can't stand up. The beast seemed to smell around, it didn't actually have any eyes but it had a nose and a large mouth with sharpened teeth. It's overall image looked like it had just stepped out of a fantasy horror film, it was something to definitely be feared. 

I took a step back in fear, my eyes not leaving the thing for a second but the next thing I knew it charged at me, stopping directly in front of me as it used it's clawed hand to attack - sending me flying into the curved wall of the ring. 

This was going to be hell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the sudden absence, I was planning on releasing this and more chapters on Christmas since I'm on my break from college, however I had an accident that resulted in me being hospitalized on Christmas day so I wasn't able to work on or release any chapters. I'm super sorry about that but I'm planning on taking this book more seriously and getting more chapters released to make up for lost time. ^^ 
> 
> Thank you for all the support and the patience with these chapters, it means a lot!


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